Guy at an REI parking lot told me my tent stakes were garbage

Some dude loading his car saw me struggling with those cheap plastic stakes that came with my tent. He walked over and said "those will snap the first time the ground gets hard." I brushed him off but sure enough, two trips later at a site in Big Sur, I broke three of them trying to get them into dry dirt. Ended up using rocks to hold the corners down all weekend. Picked up a set of MSR Groundhogs after that and they've lasted through 15 trips with no issues. Has anyone else had bad luck with the stakes that come free with tents?

2 comments

2 Comments

amygonzalez18d ago

Oh man, you just reminded me of my first trip with those cheap stakes. What nobody talks about is how theyre actually fine if you pre-soak the ground or pick a site thats been rained on recently. Ive used the stock stakes for years by just waiting for softer soil or hammering them in at a steep angle with a rock. Your mileage may vary obviously, and the MSRs are way better for sure. But I think the real trick is knowing when to use them versus when to swap to something heavier duty. Big Sur dirt is no joke though, thats a rough place to learn that lesson.

margaretf4018d ago

Oh boy, @amygonzalez I gotta kinda disagree with you there. Pre-soaking the ground isn't really practical when you're hiking into a site and realize you're setting up on packed clay. Those stock stakes are fine for a backyard tent on soft grass, but they're basically single-use plastic in real conditions, and the MSR Groundhogs are way more durable for the weight. I'd rather carry a couple extra ounces than spend a weekend picking rocks off the ground to hold my tent corners down.